InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ A Tale of Ever After ❯ Chapter 203

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

I do not own InuYasha or any of the characters created by Rumiko Takahashi


Chapter 202


The dawn was just beginning to gray the sky.

Hisa, the first up in her household, stepped out of the building. She looked up at the sky. It was mottled with patches of clear amongst the opaque clouds. A group of geese, flying in vee formation, headed away from the river.

“Okaasan always said it was good luck to see geese in the morning,” she said.  

“Did she now?” a voice behind her said.  

She turned and saw her oldest son walking up to her. Susumu had on his normal cocky grin, but he was also looking tired. Although he carried a lamp in his left hand, with the early morning gray, it gave off very little light.

“She did indeed, son,” Hisa said, smiling at him. “I’m not sure if was because she thought it was a good thing to be up and getting busy, or if she really thought they were a good omen.”

“I think I’ll take it as an omen,” the village guardian said. “It was a long night, but there was no trouble.” He yawned.  

“It was good of you to take Eiji’s turn,” Hisa said. “The day he had yesterday...”

“I don’t think he could have made it another night,” Susumu said, shrugging. “After having to deal with both Michio and Chiya, he didn’t have much left in him. Any noise from the lockup?”

“Not yet,” Hisa said. “Or at least if he did start complaining, it happened when I was too asleep to notice.”

“Well, there’s that for another good omen,” Susumu said. “I wonder if Sukeo ever went home?”

“Let’s go see,” Hisa said.

Together they began walking towards the lockup. There was no noise coming from it, but laying in front of it was the sleeping form of Seiji’s oldest son. He was curled up around the form of his brother’s dog. The dog looked up as they neared, flicked an ear, decided they weren’t worth warning off, and lay back down. There was a worn but serviceable coverlet, faded blue spread over the youth. Only the boy’s face was free of the cloth.

“That poor child,” Hisa said. “Did you cover him up?”

Susumu nodded. “About two hours after dark, I tried to get him to go home, or at least some place sheltered, but he refused. When I came back from my round, he was hard asleep. It was easier to cover him than to get him to move, so that’s what I did.”

“Such loyalty.” Hisa shook her head. “There’s some good in that boy.”

“Indeed. A worthwhile trait,” Susumu said, nodding. “But it’s a shame its being wasted on a useless piece of crap like his father.”

“I still remember when you and Seiji were about twelve,” Hisa said, pulling her own cloak closer against the morning chill. “He looked very much like Sukeo-kun here. He was so intense, and had such a temper on him. Even so, I never expected the type of man he grew up into.”

“Life is funny,” Susumu said, nodding. He frowned, remembering old days. “When I was that age, I thought he’d be my best friend for life. And now look at how we’ve turned out. I’ve seen him turn around in his tracks rather than speak to me.”

Hisa shook her head. “We all make choices,” she said. “You made better choices than he did.”

Susumu shrugged “I guess. Maybe it was just that Daitaro-ojisan was just more stubborn than me.”

“Something happened.” Hisa let out a long, sad sigh, and brought her outer cloak as close as she could. “I’m going back in. Time to start breakfast. And maybe make some tea.”

“Tea sounds good, Okaasan,” the village guard said. “And then maybe a nap. I don’t want to fall asleep at Shinjiro’s wedding.”

That shattered the sadness she was entertaining, and although it didn’t go totally away, she smiled. “Then let’s go stir up the fire. It’s more pleasant inside than outside this morning.”

Susumu nodded. “But let’s enjoy the peace while we can.” He took a hard look at the lockup building. “I have a feeling it’s going to get very noisy as soon as he wakes up.”

Hisa nodded. Together, the two of them went back to the main house.


Up on the hill, Miroku, having woken up rather early, was at his little temple. Incense curled up, rising to the ceiling.

“However innumerable beings are, I vow to save them;
However inexhaustible the passions are, I vow to extinguish them;
However immeasurable the Dharmas are, I vow to master them;
However incomparable the Buddha-truth is, I vow to attain it,” the monk chanted.

Miroku, as usual, had left the door to the chapel open. As he finished his morning devotions, he heard footsteps behind him.

“Those are noble sentiments, Houshi-sama,” the voice that went with the footsteps said.

Miroku turned around and saw Daitaro standing there, giving him a friendly smile.

“They are,” the monk said, moving towards the old farmer.  

“That second one, the one about passion. That sounds particularly hard.” He scratched the back of his neck.

“You noticed that, did you?” Miroku said, giving Daitaro a small twist of a smile. “Notice that the vow is a vow to do it; it doesn’t actually say when it will be accomplished.”

“Heh, not even age does it,” the farmer said. “Although I will admit, it seems to slow things down a bit.”

“You may be on to something there,” Miroku said, joining the old farmer. “My master Mushin-sama, well, let’s say as he aged, his passions shifted. Now he’s as fond of sake as you are. Maybe more.”

That made the old man chuckle. “It is one that’s easier to indulge in as time goes by.  But the passions of the heart - do they ever change? Anger, hate, fear?”

“That’s what the Buddha tries to teach us,” Miroku said, grabbing his staff and heading for the door. “And not just the dark feelings. There’s an old teaching poem that says,

‘The Perfect Way knows no difficulties
Except that it refuses to make preferences;
Only when freed from hate and love,
It reveals itself fully and without disguise.’”

“Even love?” Daitaro seemed surprised by that.

“Love...It can trap us even more than anger,” the monk replied, sighing, but his eyes proclaimed he really wasn’t frustrated by that reality. “The goal of the way is to release us from suffering. Think about it. How would you react if something would happen to Chime-sama?”  

The two men stepped outside while Daitaro pondered that. “I guess I’m not ready to be a saint,” Daitaro said. “I’d rather be attached to those I love, than let that bond go.”

Miroku clapped the older man on the arm. “I know the feeling well myself. So what brings you up here so early in the morning?”

“My last chance at a little peace and quiet before everything starts today,” the old farmer said. “I started by paying my respects to the family kami. Thought I owed him some sake before we drink it all. Maybe old Kazuo might stop by and give us his blessing.”

Miroku chuckled. “I suspect he’ll appreciate that. After the way this week has turned out, it can’t hurt. I hear he had a desire for a taste of your brew.”

“That’s what I heard. It surprised me at first,” Daitaro said, “that the reputation of my sake had even reached the kami, but then, I thought, well, why not? It’s not like Kazuo-no-kami isn’t really one of us.”

“He does seem to act like it,” Miroku said, nodding. “It’s rare that a family kami seems to take such a strong interest in his people. Your family is blessed.”

“Or cursed with a meddling busybody. I haven’t decided yet, but still,” Daitaro said, “his intentions seem good.”

“True, true,” the monk replied, chuckling at the old farmer’s description.

Daitaro pushed his eboshi cap back and forth on his head, a gesture very similar to the one the kami tended to use, even if he didn’t know it. “Then I thought I’d stop by here and ask Kwannon for the same thing. Didn’t think sake was the right thing to offer, though.”

“You’re probably right about that one.” Miroku tapped his staff on the ground a moment, thinking. “Would you like me to stop by this afternoon and chant some sutra?”

“Chime would probably like that,” Daitaro said. “She...well you know, after Shinjiro’s first wife died, she always sort of blamed herself. I don’t know why. Poor girl was so swollen up and irritated before she passed on. Chime asked her to do some washing right before she got sick. You know how some folks think that’s bad luck.”

“I’ve heard that,” Miroku said. “But still...”

Daitaro sighed. “So she’s going overboard on things. It’s a good thing she and Erime-chan are getting along so well. Otherwise, she might just smother her with her attention.”

Miroku smiled. “Funny, the stories tend to be about how unkind the mothers-in-law are Chime’s the first one I’ve heard about who might drive the young bride crazy from being too nice.”

“That’s my woman,” Daitaro said. “So come by. We might need Kwannon’s blessing just to help her find the right balance.”

“I’ll do that,” Miroku said.  

“Good, good,” the old farmer said. “Now I better get home before they send Genjo out looking for me. I kind of snuck off before anybody else was up.”  Waving goodbye, the old man headed home.

Miroku watched him for a moment. “Ah, attachment,” he said, “how you play games on us all. Must be time for breakfast.” And turning down the path to his house, he headed home.


At another location up on the hill, a young couple were having a quite different morning experience.

InuYasha’s ear twitched as he began to wake up, but it wasn’t sound that disturbed his sleep. It was a sensation. Something light and feathery was running along his thigh.  

As he became more aware, the gentle touch began to send pleasant tingles through his body. He leaned into the touch, enjoying it and the scent it came with, something that smelled delicious, not like food, but fed another hunger, and he wanted more. It began to dawn on him that he could feel something soft and warm pressing against his body that seemed to be the source of both the tingles and the scent, and his hand reached out, pulling it closer. The feather touches grew firmer, then, and his alertness realized that the tingles had become a hand that reached out and cupped his buttock, bringing that warm softness pressing against him even closer. The scent, spiced with want, resolved as he lifted into consciousness into one he knew very well.

“Kagome,” he breathed as he opened his eyes.

“Good morning,” Kagome said, looking up at him. There was amusement in her blue-gray eyes and something more heated. He took a deep breath and became fully awake.

“Bold woman to wake me up like that,” he said, propping his head up on one elbow. “How did you know I wouldn’t be startled and wake up ready to fight?”

Kagome laughed, a pleasant musical sound. “Oh, I have these powers,” she said, and laughed again. She leaned forward just a little and planted a small kiss at the base of his throat

Briefly, he looked up at the room around him. The light filtering in through the window was grey, with just the promise of day behind it. The birds gathered outside on the trees that surrounded the house had just begun their early dawn song. From somewhere else, perhaps down at Daitaro’s, a cock had begun to crow.

“It’s barely morning. Sun’s not up over the horizon yet.” He yawned widely, then gave her an amused smile. “Why are you up so early?”

“I could ask the same about you,” Kagome said, pressing against him as she gave him a sultry grin. “But maybe it was because I went to sleep so early?” Her hand slid up his back, resting on his shoulder blade, and she kissed him lightly on the chin. “I feel a lot better than I did last night. I don’t know how you put up with me. I was so tired and grumpy.”

“You were, but you’re worth it. You put up with me enough. I’m glad to hear you feel better,” he said. “I don’t like it when you get like that. It’s not good for you.” He cupped her face gently, running his thumb over her cheek, and leaned forward and gave her a quick kiss on the lips. “It’s a good thing babies don’t come every day. You’d never get any rest.”

She moved her left arm, which had been propping her head up, through the white satin of his hair and around his neck. “We won’t have to worry about that for a while. There won’t be another one for months, Kaede tells me.”  

“Glad to hear that,” he said. “Maybe this one will be sensible and decide to come during the day.”

“That’d be nice,” she said, smiling. “I wouldn’t count on it, though. Babies seem to have a mind of their own. So we’ll just have to get our relaxation before it arrives.” Her right hand left his shoulder and began dancing between them, skating down across his stomach, and then brushing against the patch of white hair at its base.

His hand clasped hers, and moved it to the top of his thigh. “A mind of their own? Like my wife does?” He waggled his eyebrows at her. “Are you trying to start something, woman? Don’t you have to go to Kaede’s this morning?”

“Maybe I am,” she said, giving him a smoldering look that set his blood on fire.

Kagome freed her hand and moved it back to her target. This time, it didn’t stop at his hair. With a grip that she had learned quite well in their short time together, her fingers wrapped around his length. Already somewhat rigid, it hardened more at her touch. “Getting up early has its advantages. It’s a long time before I need to go to Kaede’s.”

His eyebrows went up, and then his look grew heated. “Well then, since you started it, let’s finish it,” he said. And with a moan, he captured her mouth with his, and this time the kiss was neither quick nor merely a greeting.